So I live out west now (big deal, I know) and had come back to Halifax for two weeks. I absolutely love this city but I could not believe how many shops and pizza places actually have an extra charge on them. It was only between 40-65 cents each time, but it was on seven of my receipts, SEVEN! There’s a reason I went out west and this one of them. Check all your receipts folks—they only got me for a few bucks but I was only there for two weeks. I cannot believe how greasy the city has become. And on top of that the fees at ATMs are ridiculously more in Nova Scotia then anywhere else. -From Parts Unknown
This article appears in Apr 3-9, 2014.
Coming back to Halifax from the West is like a murderer revisiting the scene of the crime. With the mega dollars you’re earning out there, you whine about a few paltry cents, we are broke and need every last penny.
We have a regular commenter here who pretty much covers the whole A.T.M. scene, but thanks for the input.
First, no need to check our receipts as these are not hidden charges; they are made obvious during the debit payment process.
Second, retailers across the world are charging these fees; and some governments are introducing prohibitive legislation stating these are “cost-of-doing business expenses” which may not be passed along to customers.
Finally, you have a choice nowadays. There are many shops and pizza joints around; a lot who will absorb the cost and not pass it on. Buy from them.
Do what I do: refuse the item. If they want me to pay to buy something at their store, I go elsewhere!
This is simple logic. Use it.
I agree, the pizza joints charge you a delivery fee, an interac fee plus you gotta leave em a tip. Alexandras will run you about 30 bucks – that’s bullshit. Stick with the pizza minis from Needs, I say.
Who says you gotta leave them a tip? As for the service charge, they are passing along the fee they get and for a small business that can eat up a lot of money.
“As a not-for-profit organization, Interac Association does not directly charge fees to customers and merchants. The Association operates on a cost-recovery basis, which means the Association charges members a “per transaction” fee (switch fee) sufficient to cover operating costs. The member fee varies annually based on operating expenditures for the year.
Effective February 1, 2014, the Interac Association member fee charged to participating Members for the Interac Debit service is $0.006362 per transaction.”
http://www.interac.ca/en/interac-about/int…
So for every ten thousand customers a business gets (who use interac) the business loses a little over 60 dollars. A fairly reasonable cost of doing business in order to accept a variety of payments and increase your profit margins.
Unfortunately, as the consumer, you are not charged a fee of $0.006362/transaction. Generally, you are charged between $0.25 and $0.75. So the business’ that employ this surcharge are not simply ‘passing the cost’ of operating a debit device along to the customer…
The merchant may either accept the (relatively minor) operations cost:
0.006362 x 10,000 = 63.62
Or they can gouge their customers.
.25 x 10,000 = 2,500.00 – 63.62 =
$2436.38 in profit for every 10,000 customers at a rate of $0.25/transaction
0.006362 !!! Bastards – my campus charges 50 cents per broke student per transaction. There are thousands of students eating their overpriced shit and being gouged. No more cafeteria coffees for me! That’s it – I’m on strike – only pissy nescafe for me cold in a thermos brought from home. fml
It sucks that they pass on the fee to their customers, but they always ask for your approval when you put the debit through on the actual machine. So your inability to pay attention doesn’t make pizza places ‘greasy,’ re: ‘hidden’ fees (because there aren’t any).
Also, stop being so lazy and stop using the private ATMs. Find an ATM for the bank your account is with and you’ll only pay any fees your bank charges (which, in most cases, is nothing).
Fucking SET.
When the pizza store menu says 19.99 for a damn pizza, but the guy at the door is asking for 30 doll hairs – there are hidden charges, PK! Go stuff a breakfast sandwich in your greasy gob.
Maybe it’s a ghetto delivery fee, fool.
I always calculate my pizza/donair orders when I order something, myself, and guess what? It’s always what it says it’s going to be.
But then again, I can add.
I almost always pay cash so this rarely effects me but if you are ordering pizza there is generally a delivery charge, this isn’t a hidden fee. It’s also not a hidden fee when you use a debit machine because it prompts you to accept or decline the additional charge. I just think any business that charges more than $.25 are jerks.
In my business I have a debit machine, the company I deal with charges .05 per debit. 1.65% on credit cards, loyalty cards up to 2%. Not really something for a business owner to cry about. I DO NOT pass that on to my customers as it’s really CODB. There are others out there as Ho!s+ says that the machine prompts for the extra charge for the service that, imo, people would rather go to their own bank or pay cash for the service. Others in the same business charge $1 for the use of their machine, providing they are conveniently working at the time.
Like others mentioned, there’s an antiquated method of payment that often does not have associated fees….it’s called cash.
Remember, convenience costs.